I usually wait until the floor debate to write my speech. I try to respond to something another delegate has said. Even then I write my remarks only in my head. Veto overrides tomorrow will be the first of many opportunities this session for the two parties to offer their different public policy approaches. I’ve …more >
It’s all hands on deck for the next 90 days. If someone can help pass my bill, I need their assistance now – not to commiserate afterwards on what could have happened. “I know the next 90 days will be crazy for you,” one friend wrote me, “but I hope we can connect afterwards.” “Perhaps …more >
Why do we need this bill? That’s the key question a bill sponsor must answer. It’s one thing that hasn’t changed during my 34 years in the legislature. This afternoon, we were discussing my SLAPP bill draft. Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, for example, try to intimidate the little guy from participating in public debate …more >
This is the prayer that I offered at today’s opening session. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord, wrote the prophet Isaiah. Since we last came together, our city was aflame. It is now our task to respond to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. To adopt policy and a budget …more >
Policy matters. If you’re concerned enough to read this legislative diary, you know that. And you know that policy is what motivates me. Wes Moore spoke at the annual Democratic Party day-before-session lunch today. Moore is a Baltimore native, Rhodes Scholar, and U.S. Army veteran. Describing two instances in his life where the social welfare …more >
I spent my day drafting bills and a prayer. There were 1,684 bill requests as of Friday. That’s an average of 9 per legislator. I was above that mark before today. My three additional requests deal with economic development and custody and visitation rights for blind parents. Speaker Busch asked me to give the prayer …more >
Every year, my goal is to introduce a bill addressing poverty or income inequality. After reading about this idea in a speech by Congressman Paul Ryan last July, I emailed the Secretary of Human Resources, “To what extent do we now inform eligible individuals at intake or subsequent contacts with DHR of the various programs …more >
You can get a lot done with your laptop and knowledgeable staff. The Red Line would run through the neighborhoods in the Edmondson Avenue corridor of the 41st District. A Sun editorial yesterday indicated that the tunnel under Cooks Lane is a potential target for cost savings. Cooks Lane is only two lanes wide on …more >
Crossfiles can be very helpful before crossover. A crossfile is an identical version of your bill that has also been introduced by a senator. Crossover is the deadline (next Monday) to pass your legislation to the other house and avoid having it delayed in the Rules Committee. A friendly lobbyist wrote me this morning that …more >
This may have been the 33rd time I spoke on this issue on the House floor. The subject was abortion, specifically the circumstances when the Medicaid program will pay for the procedure. The language in the budget bill is a compromise that was reached before I was elected in 1982. Every year, it seems, there’s …more >
